


of heresy and hierarchy

by DrunkenWhalers



Series: blood on our gloves (not on our hands) [1]
Category: Dishonored (Video Games)
Genre: <, < best tag, (as it should be), (between corvo &emily), (eventual lmao), (yeee), Again, Alexi Mayhew is Alive, Angst, Anxiety, Bisexual Corvo Attano, Blood and Injury, Corvo tells emily he is her father, Dad Daud, Demisexual Daud, Depression, Empress Emily Kaldwin, F/F, F/M, Father-Daughter Relationship, First Kiss, Fluff, Gen, I mean I am gonna introduce Delilah, Illegitimacy, Kleptomania, Lesbian Emily Kaldwin, Lesbian Sex, Low Chaos (Dishonored), M/M, Making Out, Many of them, Original Character(s), POV Alternating, Slow Burn, Smut, Witches and all tht jazz, Wyman is a woman, also he kind of comes out as bi but??, and this takes place seven years before dishonored two, bc of the outsider & daud lmao, bi jindosh, bi romantic daud, but its in third person, but shes not revealed as her aunt, enjoy, eventually, gays dancing, he just comes to terms w it, i hate first person shsfbdsiuf, idk - Freeform, in this au emily knows delilahs a witch shhh, kinda???, mostly in canon, not really as there is not a word for it in the universe, old gay dads in love tm, oof theres probs more but im lazy and shit, ooo i forgot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-25
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-09 08:13:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13477374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DrunkenWhalers/pseuds/DrunkenWhalers
Summary: When she was a child (Well, before the unfortunate assassination of her mother) she had dreamed of one day being Emily Kaldwin, first of her name. She would see her mother, her striking appearance, and see how people adored her. She saw how she got to travel the isles to meet with dukes and duchesses. She saw how she got invited and made the guest of honor at a multitude of parties, from the yearly masked balls of the Boyle family to the weddings of  Dunwalls  many socialites. She saw how she got to make important decisions and pass laws to protect the rights of those who resided among the isles, fighting for justice for them all. But of course, being Empress also means that you have to attend early morning meetings where the same people ramble on about all the same things.or the story in which emily kaldwin is not sure if being empress is all that its cracked up to be and corvo attano learns what it means to be a father(updates irregularly)





	1. the beginning of it all

**Author's Note:**

> ok so I hope you like this! been wanting to write a fic for this fandom for a v long time and finally got around to it! i haven't written all of it (only 2 chapters) but i hope to continue it if people enjoy! ~ ellie

Who knew that being an empress would be so exhausting? Emily thought this as she sat poised on her white stone and red upholstered throne, trying her best to not fall asleep during her daily meeting with the head of the city watch. When she was a child (Well, before the unfortunate assassination of her mother) she had dreamed of one day being Emily Kaldwin, first of her name. She would see her mother, her striking appearance, and see how people _adored_ her. She saw how she got to travel the isles to meet with dukes and duchesses. She saw how she got invited and made the guest of honor at a multitude of parties, from the yearly masked balls of the Boyle family to the weddings of  Dunwalls  many socialites. She saw how she got to make _important decisions_ and pass laws to protect the rights of those who resided among the isles, fighting for justice for them all. But of course, being Empress also means that you have to attend early morning meetings where the same people ramble on about all the same things.

 

“Emily, focus!” Corvo mumbled toward the young ruler, the Royal Protector and Spymaster staring straight towards the crowd of poised guards but his gaze somehow meeting the empresses strikingly similar pupils without even looking at her. She sighed, wishing for this meeting to be over so she could head off to her office and write her next letter to Wyman, having received correspondence from the Morlian noble late last night.

 

“Lady Emily, what is your opinion on this matter?” Alexi asked calmly, turning towards the empress. Emily had not heard what they were all complaining about, having been bored out of her mind. She contemplated just saying “sure” and leaving it like that but for all she knew, the question was something incredibly nontrivial, and if she were to say sure it would be incredibly catastrophic.

 

“Can you repeat the matter again, please, Captain Mayhew?”

 

The amber haired woman sighed, a slight smirk carved into her face.

 

“We were all discussing whether we need to station more guardsmen and women on Kaldwin's Bridge due to the Bottle Street Gang using it as a way to smuggle goods across Dunwall.”

 

Emily replied instantaneously “Yes, I do agree that we need more guards stationed on the bridge, but I also believe we should focus on other matters as well, such as the impending rat problem across Dunwall, which I fear could result in a second Plague.”

 

Alexi nodded, as to signal she understand what the Empress was saying. “Corvo?” She looked toward the man standing beside Emily “Your thoughts?”

 

“ As Lady Emily’s royal spymaster and protector , I am inclined to believe in whatever our dear empress sees best fit for the isles and all the cities within it.” Corvo smiles and looks at Emily, a gesture of support and gratitude. She looks back and nods graciously, then turning her way back toward the council before her. Her gaze catches Alexi’s , a signal to let her childhood friend know she was free to continue (Emily would not usually do this, as she saw herself on equal levels with the lead guard, but being in a professional setting, she was expected by her people to sit on a pedestal and rule, not conduct from the ground floor.)

 

“So lets be it!” Alexi muses calmly , yet with a pinch of pep in her voice. “I will make sure we watch out for any signs of illness or any over abundance of vermin. We already had that problem a year or so ago where visitors from Serkonos were bringing in bloodflies on their ships. We thankfully dealt with in a timely matter, with the help of the newly appointed pest control division of the watch we implemented, courtesy of your suggestion. Anything else you would like to suggest, my Lady?”

 

Emily thought for a moment. Was there anything she would like to bring to the city watches attention? She had already let them know the week before about the suspicious activity in the distillery district she had witnessed ( she had made sure to not mention exactly _when_ she witnessed it, as she did so while exploring the rooftops early in the morning). Suddenly, she remembered! How could she forget!

 

“Can you make sure to keep a lookout for a blond haired noble?” Emily asked, her tone bordering between professional and “I can’t wait to see my lover”. “I am expecting her for a - uh - meeting this afternoon.”

 

Alexi raised an eyebrow, giving a knowing look towards Emily. Being her childhood best friend (and short-term lover for a period of time) , she knew what Emily meant by “meeting”.

 

“I’ll keep an eye out, my Lady.”

 

“Thank you.” Emily blushed, thinking about what she will tell Wyman later “ You are now all dismissed.”

 

* * *

 

Emily sat at her desk, hand frivolously jotting down notes and ideas she had floating through her mind all day. She was trying her best to occupy her brain so she would not keep getting distracted by thoughts of Wyman and how she would be seeing the Morlian noble later on that day. Almost like clockwork, Emily heard a soft “knock knock” on the large white doors of her office.

 

“Empress Emily, you have a visitor. And may I say, she looks especially excited to see you”

 

 _Finally!_ Emily thought, her mouth curving into a smile. “Let her in , Officer Harding.”

 

Harding replied with a compliant “as you wish” and opened the door, ushering the visitor into Emily’s office. Emily met eye to eye with the noble, trying to keep her excitement hidden for professionality. As soon as Harding shut the door and walked away, the dark haired empress rushed over to her lover , wrapping her arms around the others neck.

 

“I missed you so much.” Emily confessed into the crook of the other woman's neck, taking in her smell of sandalwood and sea salt.

 

Wyman chuckled, holding the equally tall empress against her chest “I missed you too, love”

 

Emily pulled away and held both of her lovers hands, swinging them lightly back and forth. She observed Wyman’s features, her yellow blonde short hair , the freckles sprawled across her cheeks (as well as the rest of her body) , the small scar running across the bridge of her nose. The young empress leaned in for a kiss, capturing the other woman’s lips with her own, a dance made for two. It quickly became more heated, the two month of yearning for the other finally adding up and causing them both to pop like the cork of a bottle of fine serkonian wine. Emily was up against her desk, hands in her lovers locks, her face flushed red as the apple sitting a meer foot away. She let out a soft giggle as she was lifted on to the edge of  her worktable, her lips never disconnecting from Wyman’s. They were both so engrossed into it, blocking out the musings of the outside world, the creek of floor boards, the sounds of bards singing, the sound of-

 

“Ahem.” A rough voice let out, causing both Wyman and Emily to pull away in shock. Emily looked over Wyman’s broad shoulders, and she could not believe who she saw. The blond quickly looked back as well, moving away from the empress as soon as she got a glimpse.

 

“Lord Corvo! I didn’t hear you enter!” Wyman said, voice cracking and quaking.

 

The serkonian native smiled “Wyman, how nice to see you at this hour.” He looked toward the other woman in the room “Emily.”

 

“H-hello Corvo…” She nervously said, sliding of of her desk, quickly fixing her own hair from looking as she was just embracing her lover, despite the fact that the man in question saw all he needed to see. “I didn’t hear you enter.”

 

“T-that’s alright!” He said, stumbling over his words and trying his best not to run off in embarrassment. “I need to speak to you, but it can wait for later. You seem fairly occupied at the moment.”

 

Emily cringed, internally scolding herself for deciding to makeout with Wyman in her office, which was not locked most of the time.

 

“Alright, Corvo.” She quipped. “See you later.”

 

Corvo bobbed his head, awkwardly pointing his fingers at the two lovers like pistols, and jetted out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

 

“Curse the outsider” Emily groaned, leaning into Wyman's shoulder. “Why does this shit only happen to me?”

 

Wyman laughed heartily “It could be worse, he could have caught us - “ She rubbed Emily’s upper thigh “- later on.” The empress smirked, letting out a soft chuckle.

 

“Who says it has to be later on?” Emily wrapped her arms around Wyman’s waist. “I mean, now my ever so loyal protector is gone.” She leans forward “- and I was looking forward to that ‘little surprise’ you said you had for me.”

 

“As was I , my love.” The morlish women replied, ghosting her crimson painted lips along Emily’s neckline “As was I.”

  


 


	2. void musings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> corvo reflects and remembers, something he is far too used to doing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this is really crappy (and ive been working on it since i posted chapter one rip) but i tried??? thanks !

Corvo shut the door behind him as he cursed under his breath. Did he really see what he just saw? Yes , he knew that Emily was eighteen now and would do adult things, but actually witnessing her do as such made him want to crawl out of his skin. Though , he quickly disregarded that as he and Jessamine weren’t any better when they were young , kissing and making love on every surface they could find. 

 

_ Jessamine.  _ The man tried his best to get that name off his mind, not wanting to think about the fact that she has been gone for eight years. Eight _ long _ years. Eight years of “what ifs” and “why’s”. Eight years of grieving and depression. Eight years of wondering when he would finally tell Emily who her father was, her mother never getting the chance to do so. Corvo clutched the aged yellow envelope in his coat pocket, memories flooding through his mind.

 

_ “Corvo , when are we going to tell Emily? She wants to know who her father is and I don't know what to say.” _

 

_ “Jessamine-” Corvo grabbed her trembling hands “ We will tell her when she is ready. Whether it be face to face or a note left on her vanity. Either way, we will tell her. But I don’t know if she is ready yet, with all the stress she is put under at the moment.” He kisses her softly, her soft lips contradicting with his chapped ones. He pulled away and smiled “ Either way , I love you.”  _

 

_ “I love you too, my crow.” _

 

Corvo smiled at the memory, the bittersweet feeling flooding his mind like a broken dam. He ran his finger over the peeling wax seal on the letter, tracing the indentation of the imperial symbol over and over again as if to carve it into his finger tips.

 

He remembered Jessamine giving the envelope to him like it was just the week before, how they spent all night figuring out how to word it all, how her hands had wax residue on them for weeks from struggling with the stamp. He wished for those moments again, but alas she was gone , taken away by a man who now resided in mugs of tyvian beer and bottles of pear soda, and now the subject of his newly found interests.

 

Daud. What a mysterious man. With all his sharp edges and chiseled smooth words, making people fall at his feet with the snap of his fingers (or the point of a blade, if need be). Corvo was conflicted. On one hand, Daud had murdered the love of his life, the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, ending that dream with a literal stab into the gut, leaving her bleeding on the ground. On the other, however, Daud had saved Emily from becoming a mindless entity controlled by the ever so mischievous Delilah Copperspoon, in order to fulfil her desire to rule the isles and control the politics like the changing tides of the Pandyssian sea.

 

Corvo could never forgive Daud for the assassination of his lover, the despicable act he commited just for a pocket full of coin. But he could feel grateful for his rescue of his kin , the young girl heir to the throne. Part of him wanted to regret not putting the man down when he had the chance to, the ability to slash the man's throat, leaving a pool of blood that would stain his fairly clean hands. But he also was grateful that he opted not to do so, as then he would have never known of what he had done to save Emily , and award him for doing so. 

 

Corvo’s  mind commonly found  itself reverting back to that day, him and the Knife of Dunwall dancing a deadly tango for two, watched by a black eyed man sitting in the sidelines. The taunting. The pleading. The yelling. The bleeding. The slash of a blade against corvos shoulder blade, leaving a thin scar against the muscle, still visible to this day, eight years and a few months later. He remembers the trembles of Daud’s voice as he begged for mercy. How he promised to leave Dunwall and quit his life of crime. How he recited a monologue, as if it were practiced, words full of genuine regret and insight into his thoughts. How he let the older man go, disappearing in the blink of an eye. He still swears to this day that he heard a slow round of applause a few feet behind him.  _ Damned black eyed bastard _ .

 

The man sighed as he walked into his chambers, desperately yearning to take a nap. He pursued like a bloodthirsty wolfhound as he clambered to his large bed, not even bothering to take off his boots before he laid down and rested his head on the goose down pillow. his conscience almost immediately floated off into his dreams, sleep consuming his entire body, his mind seeping into the void above.

 

_______________________

 

He woke  to a soft hum bubbling around him. His eyes slowly opened, fixating on the crack in the wall that  _ was not there before ,  _ a purple hue shining through the gilded slit. Corvo stretched and stood up, his knees wobbly yet somehow weightless. The scent of seawater and sulfur intoxicated his lungs, two scents he had not experienced in a long while, four years to be exact.  _ Wait  _ Corvo thought, slowly walking toward his bedroom door. He knelt down and peered through the lock.  _ Bingo. _

 

Corvo slowly turned the knob , the door creaking as it jut open. Almost as if like clockwork, the bellowing sound of a whale could be heard in the distance, floating in the air above. The foyer was broken up in typical void fashion, bits and pieces separated by yards of emptiness , of which if you fell down into, would magically place you right where you started. Knowing this game all too well, although a bit rusty, Corvo took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and transposed himself to one of the floating mounds of land below, his mark glistening and stinging. He felt a whoosh of air jet behind him, causing him to turn and almost lose his footing -

 

“Hello, my dear Corvo”

 

\- it was him, the forbidden god. The one and only Outsider.

 

He couldn’t speak. He thought these visits were over, that they were no more. But as he quivered and questioned himself within his mind, the void entity spoke.

 

“I assume you are surprised to see me , no?” The thin man stepped forward, reaching out his hand and lightly caressing Corvo’s chin. The other man nodded, confused to what would happen next.

“Well , you are beautiful as usual , my  _ friend.”  _ Corvo gulped, surprised by the flirt imposed upon him. 

 

“T-thank you….” He let out, biting his lip ever so slightly. The god turned.

 

“I … brought you here because I felt as I needed to warn you….”

“Of what?”   
The paler man chuckled “Well, if I told you it would be no fun.” He looked down, smiled, then caught Corvos gaze again. 

“Just know that something is coming your way , whether it be good or bad.”

 

The mortal was…. confused. Yes he was used to the gods games of debauchery and meddling , but there was something more somber in the man’s (Man? He was still confused if he could refer to the idol as such) tone. It was more, playful than usual, as if this thing that would happen was less of a big deal, but at the sametime life changing. Corvo nodded.

 

“Then I guess you should be on your way then, Corvo.” He cocked his head to the right. “Just remember that  _ I am watching _ , and look forward to see how you react to whatever the world will be putting you up against.”

 

With that, the idol snapped his fingers. Corvo then felt the familiar feeling of falling and landing on a soft surface. He opened his eyes. He was back in his room, as usual. But there was something on the night table next to him. A hair clip with a note residing next to it. A hair clip he had given to a special someone so long ago.

 

_ take this as a token of luck. for she would want you to believe in yourself and your abilities. _

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oof so that was fun???? idk. if the ending is confusing im sorry i was trying to think of a way to

**Author's Note:**

> oof well i tried. please tell me if i made any mistakes this is unbetaed lmao
> 
> tumblr: softboyez  
> Instagram: drunkenwhalerz  
> Kik: Silverdustwoman


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